Vodka has long been a fan of folk singer and songwriter, Emily Barker. Emily’s latest single, Machine, from A Dark Murmuration Of Words (September 4, 2020), and now available as a two-version single, is one of many triumphs from the long player. A Dark Murmuration of Words is one of the most socially conscious records of 2020, and Machine is just one example of that. What’s the point of a great folk song with a powerful message if it is so ho-hum that you don’t want to hear it again? There’s…
Read MoreI’ve been a fan of Laura Veirs for years, ever since the magical track, Galaxies, came out. Vodka covered Veirs a couple of years ago, with the review of Everybody Needs You and also with Case, Lang, Veirs, and Atomic Number. There is something about Veirs compositions and her voice, that has always made her instantaneously recognizable to me, and that’s not a bad thing. Enter Turquoise Wall (seen/heard here) from Veirs latest long-player, My Echo (October 2020), a collection tagged by Veirs as “My songs knew I was getting divorced…
Read MoreDedicated Vodka readers will remember Sandtimer from Vodka’s review of Dormant back in September 2019. As dark as those times were, 2020 has proven to be darker still, with Covid-19, political unrest, and dire headlines. Sandtimer’s music has the ability to highlight the world’s problems without making your blood pressure rise further. Enter Yongo (seen/heard here) the first single from the band’s soon-to-be-released long-player, Running In Sunlight, due out in just a couple of days (November 27, 2020). Running In Sunlight was created with minimalist production, depending on sparse…
Read MoreI’ve been a fan of the folk-pop of Emily Barker for a number of years now. There is always a good story in the lyrics and the melodies are beautiful as is Barker’s voice. This single, a tribute to the Kenyan activist and founder of The Green Belt Movement, is a masterpiece of Emily’s music to date. The Woman Who Planted Trees (seen/heard here) is a beautiful tale of Wangari Maathai’s work in empowering women in local communities in Kenya and beyond. To get an…
Read MoreSomething Real (seen/heard here) is from Letitia VanSant’s just released long-player, Circadian (February 2020), and it highlights an artist with enormous skill at creating music with a strong message. There are some amazing moments within these nine tracks. Take the lead-off track, for instance, which is up for interpretation (is it a response to #MeToo, is it about not having the guts to speak out because of the voices in your head that deny you?) “Too long you’ve lived inside my mind You paid no rent, you stole my time Now I’m…
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